Technology in football, the Video Assistant referee, in particular, has become intensely controversial across almost every major competition in world football.
Inevitably, the advancement of technology across the globe has led to an overlap with sports to make mistakes from match officials less frequent. Yet many mistakes now come from the mix of human opinion and the rigidness of such technology.
A controversial decision to allow Japan’s goal to stand against Spain, sending Germany out of the 2022 Qatar World Cup, there has been a trend to look at particularly critical decisions and how this has shaped leagues and clubs.
Sheffield United’s draw with Aston Villa in June 2020, in a particularly fantastic season for the Blades, is a commonly cited example of the failings of VAR. Villa’s goalkeeper Orjan Nyland carried the ball over the line, yet no goal was given. The technology used here was a signal meant to activate on Michael Oliver’s watch when the ball crossed the line, which failed to do so. Also, Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) claimed that VAR intervention could not be initiated due to the lack of such signal to the watch of the referee, a clear error in protocol due to the evidence shown in the goalkeeper carrying the ball over the line.One small decision made in the infancy of the Video Assistant referee turned out to have more important effects than what could be seen at the time. The point earned by Aston Villa in the 0-0 draw was enough to keep them in the premier league the following season and send relegation rival Bournemouth down to the championship.
In the clash between Manchester City and Southampton in the 2020/21 campaign, referee John Moss awarded a spot kick after consultation with VAR. Phil Foden, brought down by Saints Goalkeeper Alex McCarthy, showed integrity to admit the decision was wrong and yet was penalised for his honesty.
These two examples bring the point of VAR into question. The aim of such technology incorporated into football is to eliminate human error, yet officials still dominate the space adjudicating decisions. Instead of eliminating such issues, technology such as VAR in its current form has changed the continuity of football which has existed for well over a century and is possibly too far gone for total removal. Would removing it invalidate successes and trophies over the last five or so years?
